“Spam on rise after brief reprieve”

Some weeks ago McColo, a web hosting company which was responsible for having about 2/3 of the e-mail spam, had been closed. It seemed to be a great blow against spamming, but now it is rising again. The spam senders are finding day after day new ways of sending e-mails without being caught. For example, some of them will go to other countries with weaker laws. Internet security firms are investigating to face the spamming, but loads of computers are affected and infected by this problem and it seems that this Christmas season it will grow. New words learnt:

Alleged - presumpte
Bot - programa informàtic que pot fer diverses accions per ell mateix
Host (to) - allotjar
Recruit (to) - contractar, reclutar
Reprieve - respir
Scourge - fueteig
Shutdown - tancament
SPAM - The origin of this word is Spiced Ham (pernil amb espècies), with a low quality and big spreading, like the spam messages.

Article from BBC News, written by (unknown). Wednesday, 26th of November 2008

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Discussion Essay

ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF USING COMPUTERS

It’s an undeniable fact that, in a short period of time, computers have flooded our homes, our schools and our jobs. The arrival of the World Wide Web has been a turning point in the humanity’s history. But computers aren’t perfect and we can find loads of arguments supporting or against them.

On the one hand, computers are one of the symbols of the progress. They have created thousands of new trades and some companies live repairing computers, selling in the internet, advertising or charging money for sharing their information. Furthermore, computers have changed the meaning of the word “communication”, giving the opportunity of talking with people in the other side of the world instantaneously. You can talk with your family or your friends wherever they are, you only need a computer connected to the web. They have also made a new way of teaching and learning, with the biggest amount of information ever seen.

But, on the other hand, there’s the dark side of computers. All of this technology needs a lot of energy and resources, which aren’t obtained in a safe way for the environment. Computers become obsolete in less than five years and there’s no chance to use them again, generating a lot of rubbish. Moreover, most of the information in the internet isn’t true and loads of web pages aren’t reliable. Then, information becomes disinformation and the users must be very careful to recognize it. Another problem is that some persons become addicted to the computers, they are stuck to the screen and they need a treatment to live without their gadget.

In conclusion, there are good points and bad points about computers, but I think that nowadays there are more bad arguments than good ones. In my opinion, the idea of computers is good but, in practice, it isn’t well carried out. Otherwise, most of the problems are possible to solve and I hope that, in the future, computer will be one of the man’s best friends.

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Ameriquest: don't judge too quickly... We won't

This is an exercise that I made for practicing in class. The objective is to fill the spaces with the words: is, are getting, is going to be, killed, hold, enjoyed, look, have got, calling, are asking, feel, hate and forgot.
EXERCISE:
DON’T JUDGE TOO QUICKLY... WE WON’T: AMERIQUEST

1-I don’t _____ your mother.

2-Patient has a fractured fibia. Given him a mild sedative. So he’ll be able to go home tomorrow.
Daddy’________ so excited!
That ______ him.
Paging Doctor Palmer, doctor...

3-All the boys are ______ Crazy Girl!
I hope she sings this tonight.
I know!
We need gum!
I’m on it!
Oh honey! Here_ some money.
What ___ we ___ here?
I’m her...daddy.

4-Hi folks, we hope you _______ your flight today. We're going to be starting our decent...

5-

6-Hello. How much ___ they ______?
Well, that's a lot of money for a deck!
I hate to tell you this but you ____ _____ robbed.
Did you hear me? You _____ ______ robbed.

7-(song) I've been really tryin', baby
Tryin' to ____ back this feelin' for so long
And if you feel like I ____, baby
Then come on, oh, come on

8-______ at the...

9-Excuse me... Oh! What happens! Hi!
Hi! What are you doing?
Eh! ______ your wallet....

10-

ANSWER:

1-I don’t hate your mother.

2-Patient has a fractured fibia. Given him a mild sedative. So he’ll be able to go home tomorrow.
Daddy’s going to be so excited!
That killed him.
Paging Doctor Palmer, doctor...

3-All the boys are calling Crazy Girl!
I hope she sings this tonight.
I know!
We need gum!
I’m on it!
Oh honey! Here’s some money.
What have we got here?
I’m her...daddy.

4-Hi folks, we hope you enjoyed your flight today. We're going to be starting our decent...

5-

6-Hello. How much are they asking?
Well, that's a lot of money for a deck!
I hate to tell you this but you’re getting robbed.
Did you hear me? You’re getting robbed.

7-(song) I've been really tryin', baby
Tryin' to hold back this feelin' for so long
And if you feel like I feel, baby
Then come on, oh, come on

8-Look at the...

9-Excuse me... Oh! What happens! Hi!
Hi! What are you doing?
Eh! Forgot your wallet....

10-

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Fourth Oral Presentation

This is the video of my first oral presentation of the school year, the 4th in Batxillerat. First of all I’ll comment my presentation and then I’ll put the comment of the other presentations that we have made in class. MY PRESENTATION:

PRESENTATION: I had a powerpoint with the content of my presentation, some examples and images.

BODY LANGUAGE AND EYE CONTACT: I was more relaxed than in the other presentations. I looked to the audience or to the screen, moving my hands (maybe too much)

CONTENT: I think I introduced new information to the audience, because it was new for me when I chose this topic. I looked for information about different types of humor and I tried to choose some examples to make it easy to understand. I didn’t put a video, it could have been good.

LANGUAGE: I checked the grammar in the dictionary I looked for expressions and words related to the world of humour. I used a too much times “humour”, but I think that some synonyms aren’t appropriate to this topic. I put “humor” in the presentation because the dictionary said it was correct, but now I know that “humor” is in American English and “humour” is in British English.

PRONUNCIATION & ENTONATION: I tried to don’t extend the words or say “mmmmm” “aaaaaaa...” to win time, because when I do it I extend them too much and I prefer to stop and think.


COMMENTS OF THE OTHERS’ PRESENTATIONS:

Orals 1rst term 2n...

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Summary: Pride and Prejudice

The last day we watched in class the film “Pride and prejudice”. The story is very similar than the book that we had read: The main character, Elizabeth Bennet, a prejudiced girl from a medium social class, meets a rich gentleman, Mr. Darcy, who teaches her that to judge people at first sight and without care can drive us until a great mistake. That happens with Elizabeth and Darcy but, at the end, they finish together, married and happy.

Apart from that, there are more love stories in the background, very varied and which involve the Bennet sisters and their family.

As I’ve said, the film is similar to the book, but there are some differences. In Pemberley, when Elizabeth visits the house with her uncles, the servant tells them how good person is Mr. Darcy, but in the film she doesn’t speak. When Lydia elopes with Mr. Wickham, Elizabeth doesn’t tell the news to their uncles and Mr. Darcy at the same time. Finally, if I’m not mistaken, when Lady Catherine de Bourgh visits Elizabeth, they don’t meet in a room and at night but they go for a walk near Bennet’s House. Furthermore, Elizabeth and Mr Darcy meet some times in Lady Catherine’s gardens before he proposes her.

There are also differences between the films (the British version and the American version). On the one hand, the British film finishes when Elizabeth tells her father that she really wants to marry Mr. Darcy and he is astonished because two of her daughters have promised in a very short period of time. On the other hand, the American version continues this scene and finishes in Mr. Darcy’s house, in Pemberley, near the lake, at night. In this scene there’s the final kiss, giving a more typical ending. In my opinion, the first one is better than the second, which is very cheesy.

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Activity about Martin Luther King, Jr. : "I have a dream"

After 1876, blacks lost most of their rights, and they tried to get them with the American Civil Rights Movement (1955–1968). African Americans were discriminated and oppressed by whites. They couldn’t vote, they didn’t have part in the justice system, there was racial segregation (Public facilities, government services like education were different depending on the colour of the skin of the persons. Blacks and whites were separated in most of the activities in the daily life. For example, they couldn’t go to the same restaurants.). Sometimes, blacks were exploited because they didn’t have the same job opportunities and they suffered violence by the police and the whites. This situation was different in the North than in the South (it was “better” to live in the south). Georgia, Mississippi or Alabama were the worst places for black people. The Pilgrims were the European settlers who celebrated the Thanksgiving Day, a very important American holiday, with American natives. The spirituals are songs made by African slaves in America. The word “spiritual” comes from “spiritual song” and it’s related with religion. Vocabulary:

Rooted - arrelat
Rise up - aixecar-se, revoltar-se
Creed - credo
Hold - agafar, mantenir
Sweltering - sufocant
Heat - calor, escalfor
Rough - agrest
Crooked - torçat
Straight - dret, recte
Flesh - carn , (In the flesh - en persona)
Despair - desesperació
Hope - esperança



Martin Luther King, Jr. (English / Català)

“I have a Dream”

(Tinc un Somni (una il•lusió))

delivered 28 August 1963, at the Lincoln Memorial, Washington D.C.



And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

(I doncs, encara que ens enfrontem a problemes d’avui i de demà, encara tinc un somni. És un somni profundament arrelat dins el somni americà.)

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

(Tinc la il•lusió que, algun dia, aquesta nació s’aixecarà i viurà el veritable significat del seu credo. “Sostenim aquestes veritats per posar de manifest que tots els homes han estat creats amb les mateixes igualtats”)

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

(Tinc la il•lusió que un dia, sobre les muntanyes vermelles de Georgia, els fills dels antics esclaus i dels propietaris d’aquests esclaus seran capaços de seure junts a la taula de la germanor.)

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

(Tinc la il•lusió que un dia, fins i tot l’estat de Mississippi, un estat sufocant de bullent injustícia, sufocant amb la calor de l’opressió, serà transformat en un oasis de llibertat i justícia.)

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today!

(Tinc la il•lusió que els meus quatre petits fills algun dia viuran en una nació on no seran jutjats pel color de la seva pell sinó pel contingut de la seva personalitat.

Ara tinc un somni!)

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today!

( Tinc la il•lusió que un dia, fins arribar a Alabama, amb els seus viciosos racistes, amb el seu governador que té els llavis impregnats de les paraules “interposició” i “anul•lació”, un dia, allà a Alabama, petits nois negres i noies negres podran ajuntar les mans amb petits nois blancs i noies blanques, com a germanes i germans.

Tinc un somni avui!)

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together."

( Tinc la il•lusió que un dia cada vall podrà ser elevada, i cada cim i muntanya es podrà rebaixar, els indrets agrests es faran plans i els llocs torçats s’aixecaran, “i la glòria del Senyor podrà ser revelada i les persones ho podran veure juntes”.)

This is our hope, and this is the faith that I go back to the South with.

( Aquesta és la nostra esperança, i aquesta és la fe amb la qual me’n vaig cap al Sud.)

With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

( Amb aquesta fe, podrem extreure de la muntanya de la desesperació una pedra d’esperança. Amb aquesta fe, podrem transformar les sorolloses discòrdies de la nostra nació en meravelloses simfonies de germanor. Amb aquesta fe, podrem treballar junts, pregar junts, lluitar junts, que ens empresonin junts, aixecar-nos per la llibertat junts, sabent que un dia serem lliures. )

And this will be the day -- this will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning:

(I aquest serà el dia, aquest serà el dia quan tots els fills de Déu podran cantar amb un nou propòsit.)

My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing.

(El meu país (It is of you) és vostre, dolça terra de llibertat, per vosaltres canto.)

Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim's pride,

(Terra on els meus pares van morir, terra del l’orgull dels peregrins.)

From every mountainside, let freedom ring!

(Des de cada racó de la muntanya, deixem que la llibertat soni!)

And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true.

(I si Amèrica serà una gran nació, això haurà de ser cert.)

And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire.

(I doncs, deixem que la llibertat soni des dels prodigiosos cims de New Hampshire.)

Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York.

(Deixem que la llibertat soni des de les poderoses muntanyes de Nova York.)

Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania.

(Deixem que la llibertat soni des dels immensos Alleghenies de Pennsylvania.)

Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado.

(Deixem que la llibertat soni des dels Rockies de Colorado coberts de neu.)

Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.

(Deixem que la llibertat soni des de les curvilínies pendents de California.)

But not only that:

(Però no només això:)

Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.

(Deixem que la llibertat soni des de la Stone Mountain de Georgia.)

Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee.

(Deixem que la llibertat soni des de la Lookout Mountain de Tennessee.)

Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi.

(Deixem que la llibertat soni des de cada cim i cada monticle de Mississippi.)

From every mountainside, let freedom ring.

(Des de cada indret de muntanya, deixem que la llibertat soni.)

And when this happens, when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual:

Free at last! Free at last!

Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!

(I quan això passi, quan permetem que la llibertat soni, quan deixem que soni des de cada poble i cada llogaret, des de cada estat i cada ciutat, serem capaços de fer anar més de pressa el dia que tots els infants de Déu, homes negres i homes blancs, jueus i no cristians, protestants i catòlics, seran capaços d’ajuntar les mans i cantar les paraules de l’antiga cançó espiritual negra:

Lliures finalment! Lliures finalment!
Gràcies Déu totpoderós, som lliures finalment!)

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Opinion Essay

IS HUMOUR NECESSARY TO SURVIVE?

Humour is present in lots of situations in the daily life. We can find it in the TV programs, in the newspapers or in the people who surround us. This fact raises a question: Do we really need it? In my opinion, humour is one of the most important things in our lives. Maybe it isn’t always necessary, but sometimes it is essential.

On the one hand, it depends on the type of humour. If we talk about silly humour or annoying humour, it’s not necessary. Maybe it makes some people laugh, but perhaps somebody becomes angry or sad, and we could dispense with this humour. There’s also a witty humour. I believe that’s a good humour because it gives a reason to laugh. If it’s harmless and doesn’t want to offend people, it is thousands of times better than cruel humour. If I had to mention some quotations, Albert Einstein’s words "Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former. ", or Bill Vaughan’s quote "We learn something every day, and lots of times it's that what we learned the day before was wrong." would be good examples of witty humour.

On the other hand, the situation determines the humour. Not all the types of humour can be used all the circumstances. For example, you can tell this joke: " A nursery school pupil told his teacher he’d found a cat, but it was dead. “How do you know that the cat was dead?” she asked her pupil. “Because I pissed in its ear and it didn’t move,” answered the child innocently. “You did WHAT?” the teacher exclaimed in surprise. “You know,” explained the boy, “I leaned over and went ‘Pssst’ and it didn’t move” ". Surely some people will laugh, but maybe, if your little sister’s cat has just died, it isn’t the best moment to tell her this joke. Otherwise, if a person is always in a hospital and a clown visits him and makes him laugh, surely he’ll get better faster.

Finally, the personality of each person is different, some people take life with more humour than others who don’t understand humour or it’s difficult to make them laugh. I think it’s better to talk with somebody who is cheerful than to have a conversation with a very serious person because the joy spreads easily. There’s a quotation from Elbert Hubbard (an American writer) in favor of humour: "Don't take life too seriously; you'll never get out of it alive". I think that’s a vital truth.

In conclusion, humour is very important and it’s hard to imagine a life without humour, without something very simple which, provided in small doses, can be very important to survive and make life more pleasant.


MISTAKES:

Humor (American English) - Humour (British English)
People who surrounds (plural noun) - People who surround us
will be better - will get better
In one hand - On the one hand

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Dialogue: Problems with alcohol

A known drunkards meeting, represented by:

Amy Winehouse (Marina Sarquella)
Barney Gumble (Alex)
John Hancock (Me)

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"The business of books"

The next 8th of October starts the annual book fair of Barcelona. It’s the 26th edition of this event and, there, there are the most important companies of this industry. Catalonia represents more than the 50% of the Spain’s publishing industry. In the fair there will be stands with roundtable talks, workshops, new titles, distributors, etc. The guest of honor of this year is Quebec.
The last day of the fair is the 10th of October, and it’s a good thing to do if there aren’t more plans.

New words learnt:

Boast - presumir
Roundable - taula rodona (discussió)
Descending - baixada
Fair - fira

Article from Catalonia Today (Thursday 2nd of October 2008), written by Joseph Wilson

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"Just plug in and drive"

General Motors is going to launch a new car called Volt. It’s made as an answer to Toyota’s Prius. The car works with electrical batteries (the name of the car comes from this quality) and it charges the energy in about three hours.
This fact is very important for the company, which has just celebrated its 100th birthday and last year lost the first place as the world’s most important automobile maker, because Toyota got the first place.
The company expects to launch the Volt in the last term of 2010, and there are already about forty thousand unofficial buyers. I think the car is a bit expensive (€40.000).


New words learnt:

Ace up - as
Sleeve - màniga
Scheduled - Previst

Article (story of the week)from Catalonia Today (Thursday 2nd of October, 2008)written by Joseph Wilson

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"Have a flutter"

The Butterfly Park, in Empuriabrava, is a place with plenty of butterflies, moths and, more recently, tropical birds. There you can see different species, all of them amazing. Some can travel through oceans and some of them live only one day after mate. In the park, you can also see some iguanas, abandoned because they had grown too much.
In the Butterfly Park, animals and plants live in perfect harmony like in a tropical forest.

New words learnt:

Leak (to) - degotar
Stripped-pine - parquet
Odds - probabilitats
Plight - mala situació
Moth - papallona nocturna / arna
Painstakingly weaving - laboriosament teixit
Cocoon - capoll
Mate (to) - aparellar-se
Utterly - absolutament
Starvation - fam
Somewhat of a - una espècia de / una mena de
Entrepreneur - empresari
Onerous - pesat
Spooky - “espeluznante”
Nettle - ortiga

The article is from RESIDENT, September 2008, and it's written by Simon Newman

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Joke

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A man receives a phone call from his doctor.
The doctor says, "I have some good news and some bad news."
The man says, "OK, give me the good news first."
The doctor says, "The good news is, you have 24 hours to live."
The man replies, "Oh no! If that's the good news, then what's the bad news?"
The doctor says, "The bad news is, I forgot to call you yesterday."

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Presentation e-mail

Hi Lourdes!

My name is Adrià, I’m seventeen years old and this year I’m going to study 2nd of Batxillerat. If I pass it I want to study Mechanical Engineering at the University of Girona because I love cars. I’ll probably go to Girona because it’s closer than Barcelona and I don’t need a high access mark (a 5.00). After that, If I get the degree (and my time and my money let me do it), maybe I get specialized in Environmental Engineering because I am very interested in this topic. But now I need to concentrate on Batxillerat.

I live in Vila-Sacra. It’s a small town between Figueres and Castelló d’Empúries. It’s a peaceful place but sometimes it’s very boring. One of the things which I like most is that you can go anywhere with a bike, but I hate that to go to Figueres or Castelló there is only a bus per hour (two in summer) and sometimes buses don’t come because they think the bus stop will be empty and they jump it. Despite it, I catch the bus every day.

As for my personality, I think I have changed quite a lot lately. I’m very shy but, if it’s necessary, I forget that. If I’m nervous or uncomfortable I take my nose or my eyes. I’m complicated to understand, but easy to please. Maybe sometimes I’m too much insensitive because I watch some things from a different viewpoint.
I am very active. I play in the Esplais handball team in Castelló d’Empúries. I hope this year we will win some matches (the last year hadn’t been very good). I usually play in the bad position (well, for me it’s normal because I’m left-handed) and I wear the number eight. This year I want to start swimming two hours every week because it’s one of the best sports for the body.
I like watching films and, in my free time, I play with my Playstation. Another of my hobbies is taking photos. I became interested in photography in second of ESO, but now I have stopped a little bit because my camera isn’t very good and it needs a lot of time.

This summer has been very short. I’ve been working as a lifeguard at the beach in Empuriabrava. Maybe it’s not related with what I want to study but I like it because it’s a very gratifying job. Luckily, this year we haven’t got deceases and that’s good because it’s hard to live it.
I’ve also got the theoretical part of the driving license and I only need to pass the practical exam. I’ve always wanted to drive and, if I can, I want to take the exam the week of my birthday.

Well, this is a short summary of me.
Good bye!

Adrià

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Final evaluation of 1st Batxillerat

Well, I’ve finished my portfolio and I’ll say my opinion about it:

I think that I have improved my level of English since September 2007. In one side, for example, there is a difference between the first oral presentation and the last one. I feel more comfortable talking in English than at first. On the other side, I’ve learned how to make a formal letter or an opinion essay.
Maybe, the activity which best shows my level of English is the oral presentation.
I think that the most useful activities are the oral presentations and the books. I’ve learnt a lot reading the books.
One of the activities that I didn’t find useful is the writing of a formal letter. It’s useful but I think that it would be more useful to learn how to write a good e-mail because now we prefer to send an e-mail before doing a letter because it’s cheaper, faster and more flexible, but we tend to write like in a mobile phone.
Finally, I think that most of the activities we have done are good for next year.

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Third Oral Presentation

PRESENTATION: We had got a PowerPoint to show our presentation, with photos of rubbish dumps. We also had got a box with different objects made with different materials.
BODY LANGUAGE AND EYE CONTACT: I was more relaxed than in the first presentation but a bit more nervous than in the second one. I looked to the audience or to the screen, changing depending on the content of the information.

CONTENT: We introduced new information to the audience. We looked for information about the problem of the waist, and what can we do with it.

LANGUAGE: We checked the grammar in the dictionary and we looked for expressions and words related to the world of waist (rubbish, trash, etc.). I used a lot “as you can see” or “also”.

PRONUNCIATION & ENTONATION: I didn’t extend the words but I left some spaces between the sentences. Another thing that I think it was better than in the other presentations is that, when I was thinking what I needed to say, I didn’t make sounds like “mmmm...”.

Oral others.doc

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Summary: The Ghost Rider

A motorcycle rider (Johnny Blaze) knows that his father is dying of cancer and he gives his soul to an unknown man who says that he can cure his father. Johnny didn’t believe in those things but, miraculously his father gets over the cancer (but he dies the same day in an accident). Johnny’s soul belongs to that man (Mephistopheles).
After that, Johnny becomes the Ghost Rider at nights. He punishes the villains and he needs to beat Blackheart (Mephistopheles’ son).
Roxanne had been his girlfriend but he abandoned her after lose his soul. Now, they meet again, and she discovers what happens to Johnny.
At the end, Blackheart kidnaps Roxanne and the Ghost Rider travels to San Venganza. Once there, he saves Roxanne and kills Blackheart, but when Mephistopheles comes to give him his soul, he doesn’t accept it. He will continue being the Ghost Rider.

Stunt rider: pilot d’acrobàcies.
Bonehead: estúpid
Greed: avarícia
Carny: carnaval
Sin (to): pecar

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"Florida's hurricane simulator"

A group of scientists and graduate students at the University of Florida is creating the world's most powerful portable hurricane simulator. They want to reproduce hurricanes because every year some hurricanes are affecting the region and they destroy houses and cause a lot of damages. Because of this, loads of families lose their homes.Then, scientists need to investigate new structures, new materials and solutions to the problem of hurricanes.
Harness (to): Aprofitar.
Raindrop: Gota de pluja.
Strap (to): Lligar amb una corretja.
The article is from “BBC News” (7th June 2008) and it’s written by Andy Gallacher.

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Opinion essay: Exams importance

I agree with the idea that too much importance is given to taking exams at school.

In one side, I think that we work a lot of hours at school and the exams are only a small part of the work that we do, but the final marks only show our results in the exams and this isn’t fair.
On the other side, I also believe that, when we do the exams, we tend to be nervous and we can’t do the exercises as much well as we could do them at home without pressure.
In addition, we haven’t got enough time to complete the exams and each person works at his rhythm. Then, if we can’t finish the exam we can’t show what have we learnt.

In conclusion, I think that exams aren’t useful to evaluate our knowledge and we give too much importance to taking exams.
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Opinion essay: The respect to our world

“We have almost learnt to respect our world. Do you agree?”

I disagree with the opinion that we have almost learnt to respect our world. In my opinion, we know that we must respect our planet, but we don’t act accordingly, it’s quite the opposite.

In one side, we generate loads of rubbish every day, we are destroying the forests to satisfy our wishes, the ice in the poles is melting and the animals are dying out, the global warming and the greenhouse effect are increasing, etc.
While these things are happening, most of the people are buying not useful objects, living their dreams without being aware of how important their help can be.
On the other side, I think it’s nice to think about the problems of the world and how to solve them, but only a small part of the population is working on it, recycling, saving the world for the newcomer generations.

In conclusion, we still need to learn how to respect our world, we need to act and we can do it, and that our small help is essential.
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Dialogue by Alejandro Peña, Miriam Falgàs and me.

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TOC-TOC
- Wait a moment! I’m coming!
(He opened the door and three men entered into the house.)
- Where is the money? (Said the smallest one, with a cigar)
- What ... money? Who are you?
- Don’t turn a deaf ear; you know you owe a lot of money to the boss.
- Wait, wait! I’ll return you the money when I’ll finish my business.
- I don’t trust on your words. We have been waiting too much time.
- No, no! This time it’s true!
- Ok, it’s your last chance. But if I don’t have it tomorrow at midnight, I’ll come and kill your daughter.
- No, please! Kill me, but don’t touch my family!
- I’ve warned you. I don’t withdraw my words. Sayonara. You two, beat him up.
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"Five-star luxury in the south"

This article talks about Villa Retiro. It's a very special hotel because it's the only one with a spa and five stars in the south of Catalonia. The hotel is placed near teh Ebre river, in an old building designed by a famous architect. The rooms have got the most luxurious equipments and the spa is incredible, with waterfalls, hydro-massage, yacuzzi, etc. There is also a restaurant with a very old tree. The cheff has got a michelin star and the massagists know indian techniques. The personnel is very qualified and, very important, they love their job.

New words learnt:
personnel - treballadors
waterfalls - cascada

This article is from "Catalonia Today" (Thursday, April 10th , 2008) and it's written by Germà Capdevila.

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Acrostic

The story involves a princess, a fierce dragon and a brave horseman.
He was George, patron saint of England and Catalonia amongst others.
Every year we celebrate his deed on the 23rd of April.

Long time ago an enormous creature asked for offerings in a realm.
Eventually, the princess was going to be eaten by the dragon.
George came on a white horse, with a shield and a sword.
Evading the fire he slew the dragon and rescued the princess.
Nobody ever knew anything about him.
Drops of blood became rosebushes.
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"A library of beer"

The article “A library of beer” talks about a business in Barcelona. It’s a place where people can go and ask for a beer. There are lots of flavors and kinds of beer from all over the world, but always with excellence and quality. This place isn’t only reserved for tourists; anybody can go there. It’s an alternative to pubs. Smoking isn’t allowed and there isn’t wine.

I think it’s a different way to enjoy this old drink and maybe, if I go to Barcelona and I walk near the “Cerveteca” I’ll go there. But I think it seems to be a bit expensive.

The article is from “Catalonia Today” (Thursday, February 21st 2008) and it’s written by Joseph Wilson.
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"Arizona among 16 states reporting tainted melons"

This new comes from the Google news. It was published on the 23rd March (2008). There’s a salmonella outbreak in Arizona. About 40 people in 16 states have become sick because of tainted cantaloupes from Honduras. Now, the melons are being reported and the Food and Drug Administration is investigating this issue.


New vocabulary:
Among (entre)
Tainted (contaminat)
Cantaloupe (tipus de meló)
Spokeswoman (portaveu)
Grocer (botiguer)
Purchased (comprat)
Salmonella outbreak (brot de salmonel•la)
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"Lansing area can expect snowy Easter"

This new from the Google News (March 23, 2008) comes from the Lansing State Journal.
The weather forecast says that maybe, this Easter, there will be wind and snow or rain, especially in Lansing (Michigan), with temperatures between 15 and 35 degrees. Spring is here but winter doesn’t want to leave.

New vocabulary:
Forecaster (home del temps)
Expected (esperat)
Gust (ràfega)
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"Dollar rally against euro and yen"

This new from http:// news.bbc.co.uk on 20th March (2008) talks about the current situation that involves the dollar, the euro, the yen, etc. The dollar has had a soft recovery, but it’s still weak. Analysts speculate about what can happen next weeks but they aren’t very optimistic.

New vocabulary:
Sharp (punxa)
Drop (desnivell / caiguda)
To boost (empènyer / aixecar la moral/ impulsar)
Rate (índex / taxa)
To bounce (rebotar)
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"What the summit achieved on CO2"

This is a new from http:// www .bbc.co.uk appeared on 16^th of March (2008). It talks about the future in the EU and what can happen with the CO2 emissions after and before the Copenhagen summit (2009). We can see Mrs. Merkel’s opinion. We can also see that it’s a critical problem because a change benefits some people, but annoys other people too.

New vocabulary:
To achieve (aconseguir)
Greenhouse (hivernacle)
Tough (dur)
Leakage (fuita)
Fallback (alternativa)
To outrage (indignar)
Trader (comerciant)

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"McLaren rule out ‘Spygate’ appeal"

News from http:// news.bbc.co.uk/, 26th September 2007. Topic: motor sport (sports). The article talks about the spying row happened in the 2007 Formula One Championship. The FIA found some e-mails sent by Fernando Alonso and Pedro de la Rosa. Also, the team suspended the chief designer, who had documents of Ferrari in his house. At the end, McLaren were found guilty of espionage and deprived of the points got.

New vocabulary:
To focus on (centrar-se en)
Huge (enorme)
Ongoing (en curs)
Appeal (crida)
Rule out (descartar)
Row (escàndol)
Abating / to abate (apaivagar-se)
To be found (ser declarat)
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"Chupa Chups tries to keep it real"

This is a new from “Catalonia Today” (17th January 2008). It talks about the company created in Catalonia in 1958 and its most famous brand: a simple sweet stuck on a stick. There’ve been created around 127 flavors and some of them are very strange, like 7UP, Pepsi, Marcilla Coffee, natural herbs, etc.
This product has always been surrounded by glamour, marketing campaigns and famous people like Dalí or the Spice Girls.
The founder of this money printer died in 2003 and in 2006 a multinational bought that brand. Now, chupa-chups is trying to survive in a very competitive world with different thoughts than the world which saw when it was born.

words/expressions learnt:
flavor (gust)
stuck ((adj.)enganxat)
stick ((n.)pal) Read more!

Frankenstein: summary and differences between the film and the book

The story of Victor Frankenstein is a fiction story. It was written by Mary Shelley. It tells the tragedies of a man who disobeyed the nature trying to avoid the death and creating life. But he forgot something in his experiment: the importance love and care. His egoism and ambition lead him to the suffering and the solitude.

The story ends with tragedy, death and sadness, but there’s hope too, because it gives a warning. This story teaches what we can’t ever do, what needs to be changed to avert doing mistakes in the future. We need to know that life is something very serious. This message is received by the captain of a boat and his crew, who will bring this knowledge to the rest of the world.

There are some differences between the book we have read (an adaptation of the original) and the film directed by Kenneth Branagh (1994):

First of all, Victor had more brothers in the book than in the film, and his mother died because of a disease, not because of some problems in the birth of Victor’s brother. In the book, Victor meets Henry Clerval when they are child, not in the university (film). Moreover, Henry doesn’t know his intentions, but in the film he is always with Victor and he advises him to stop the experiments.
In the book, the monster strangles Elizabeth, but in the film he pulls out her heart. Also, in the book, Victor doesn’t do anything with Elizabeth’s inert body, while in the film he revives her.

In spite of these differences, the story is very original and it makes some conflictive questions about the progress of the science. I am a bit surprised because this problem was questioned in 1818 and it’s still a relevant topic. I think the book is better than the film because when I read the book I imagined some things different than what I’ve watched in the film.

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Summary: Sleepy Hollow

The doctor Ichabod Crane (Johnny Depp) goes to Sleepy Hollow from New York City to investigate some murders that have happened in the village. There is something mysterious: a headless horseman appears at night and decapitates people with his sword. But the strangest thing is that the horseman takes away the heads and nobody founds them.

People can’t hide through the forest because they are frightened of him.

Ichabod investigates with Young Masbath, the son of one of the victims, and Katrina Van Tassel, the mayor’s daughter. They discover the tomb of the rider, but his skull isn’t there.

When they reveal some dark stories about the village, they find the cause of these happenings: A woman has stolen the skull and manipulates the rider killing the people of the village.

At the end, the headless horseman recovers what’s his. Then, he finishes with the woman and rests in peace.

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Description of a person

Her face is like an old scenery. Under the wide forehead there are two bright and wise, alive and eager eyes, protected by thin eyebrows.
An aquiline nose grows imposing, giving a bit of majesty.
The mouth, with thin and soft colored lips, when she smiles, shows the white and perfect teeth. Her chin is moderately stand out, a little bit sharp.
The time and the weather have left wrinkles all over the face. Each expression is followed by a skin movement that creates lots of small mountain chains separated by deep faults. She has short hair because she says that the age of long hair has passed for her. The definitive grey has invaded it with some white streaks.
She walks a bit hunched, taking the years on her back, but she doesn’t need any help: With her skinny hands and thin legs, she moves wherever she wants.
Her character is very strong and it’s hard to change her mind.
Now she wants to travel. It’s her thrill. Problems and duties have gone away and her husband isn’t here. Her children have given her some grandchildren.
With peace and happiness she faces the last years of her life. “I’ll sleep when I’ll be dead” she says. That’s my grandmother, an 83 years young woman.
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My level of English around Europe

LP-118241.doc

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CONCLUSIONS: Well, I’ve finished the tests and it says that my level of English is the B1-B2.
But I think that this isn’t very serious because there are some bugs. For example, there was an exercise that said something like “choose the word that is the opposite of the word in CAPITALS of this sentence” and... there wasn’t a sentence!!!

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Second Oral Presentation

PRESENTATION: We had got a PowerPoint to show our presentation, with a lot of photos of dishes and other
things. We wanted to make them feel like eating with those images.

BODY LANGUAGE AND EYE CONTACT: I was more relaxed than in the first presentation. I looked to the audience or to the screen, changing depending on the content of the information. At first, I was holding the paper but I leant on the table because my hand was shaking. At the end, I left it on the table because it was impossible for me to read and I wasn’t nervous. Another thing that I think it was better than in the first presentation, is that when I didn’t remember a word I used a synonym and I continued.

CONTENT: We introduced new information to the audience. We looked for information about the food culture, the traditions and the dishes in the internet. The information was quite detailed and I think it was original.

LANGUAGE: We checked the grammar in the dictionary and we looked for expressions and words related to the world of food (dishes). I used a lot “as you can see” or “also”.

PRONUNCIATION & ENTONATION: I extended the words but I think I did it less than in the first presentation. Apart from this, I think that my pronunciation isn’t very bad.

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Description of a landscape

It’s a sunny day in February. It’s half past two and I’m sitting on a bench, in a small park surrounded by a road in front of me and on my left side. It separates the park from the town. On my back there are three houses in building process and a hole with space for another one. Finally, on my right hand there is an uninhabited field, maybe it’s waiting for its turn to be occupied by new buildings and families.

The sky is cloudless, with light sky blue color and a blazing sun. The park is all covered by an irregular layer of grass, touched by the breeze, except for a square of sand in the middle.

The grass spreads over the ground with green and light brown areas because of the night frost. Trees are naked and some daisies have grown together announcing the coming spring.

In the square of sand there are some swings made of wood and tires.

Twelve benches are shared around the park and there are some fungus living there, creating a cover with yellow, white and brown stains.

Streetlights now are switched off, waiting for the night, when they will open their eyes.

Small birds are singing loudly, but sometimes their song is lost by the sound of cars and the noises of the trowels.

If I look beyond the road, first of all, I can see some new houses and workshops of the town, an old town that was built on a little hill thousands of years ago. Beyond those houses, there is the town centre with a half Gothic and half Romanesque cathedral on the peak of the land, showing the power that, once, had made this town become one of the most important villages of the region.

Far away, weakly shaped, there are some mountains, hidden under the white snow that, in a few weeks, will start to thaw giving way to the new season.

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First Oral Presentation

OBSERVATION OF MY CLASS PRESENTATION:

NAME AND TOPIC: Childhood Toys

PRESENTATION: I had got a PowerPoint to show my presentation but I didn’t want a very long presentation and I joined the photos in a collage, that I think it didn’t leave the audience indifferent.

BODY LANGUAGE AND EYE CONTACT: I was very nervous and tense (as you can see with my posture). I looked to the audience, to the screen, and to the audience again, but not always to the same person. I didn’t read, but I became stuck for instants, then my gestures betrayed me (I took my nose because I was nervous, it’s like a barrier, and I put my hands into my pockets). After this incident I relaxed a bit, maybe because I had the collage.

CONTENT: I didn’t want to introduce new information to the audience. I wanted to make them remember their favorite toys when they were child, because I think that now we are busy with our worries and we don’t remember when we were the happiest person of the world with a simple box of crayons. I didn’t look up information. I looked for photos. I tried to make it original and detailed.

LANGUAGE: I checked my grammar in the dictionary and I looked for some expressions and words related to the world of toys. I used some sentence linkers like moreover (I learned it with this presentation).

PRONUNCIATION & ENTONATION: I think one of my mistakes was to extend the words. It happens a lot of times (well, during all the presentation). I had a very big interruption. Apart from this, I think that my pronunciation isn’t very bad.

SELF-EVALUATION: Well, if you let me do it, I won’t evaluate myself because I can’t stand to do it.

LITERAL TRANSCRIPTION:

Hello, good morning everybody! My name’s Adrià, I’m sixteen and I live in Vila-Sacra. I play handball in the Esplais Handball Team, I like drawing and I love cars.

Today I’m going to talk about something that maybe makes you be...makes you feel... (I wanted to say “makes you feel identified”.)

Moreover, Christmas is coming, and it’s their time. And maybe you’ve seen a lot of advertisements on TV. I don’t know if you know what I’m talking about.

Yes, toys. But they are not single toys; they are your childhood toys.

It doesn’t need to be a very big or expensive object. It’s sometimes a simple toy but you can play with it a lot of hours, days... and they are very special. Maybe, then you can gat a new one but it surely won’t be the same.

Here you have some of these toys:

First, there is a ball: with a ball you could play everywhere, with anyone (I wanted to say “anybody”). And I’m sure that your balls always finished on a roof, on the neighbour floor, but it was a great time to play with that. (I improvised because the original sentence was very complicated.)

Then, there are some crayons: With a crayon (a box of crayons) you can have (draw) a lot of pictures and it’s the best way to release your imagination and it’s very simple “also” (it’s also very simple/cheap). But I think there were a lot of papers (Lots of papers drawings and you draw until the crayons were very little (small).

There are (is) a bike. It has three or four wheels at start because you don’t know to ride but then, when you learn riding (to ride) you’ll never forget it. Well, a bike, I think, when you get a bike, when you are little, is like when you are eighteen and you get your first car; you are like a big child.

Then, there are the construction toys, with blocks or magnets. Once, with construction toys, I’m sure that you built a very big castle, the greatest castle of the world and then you broke it to keep it into the box. But the castle always was better than last but wore than the next one.

Finally, there are a lot of dolls. There are a lot of types like persons, animals, aliens, robots...And each one for each person but all of them with a lot of stories.

Well, there are a lot of more toys, but now I’ll show you my favorite childhood toy. These are my small cars. I played with them all of my home (I think It’s not very correct). They were on the doors, windows... everywhere, but. Every thing was good to make race, to make a parking, also (even) a traffic delay, you know? There are a lot of types but my favorite was a green one and there was also an ambulance (well, between my favorite car and the ambulance there were more cars but...). That’s all of my presentation but now I want to ask you: which are your childhood toys...

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Formal letter (by Marina Sarquella and Adrià Carmona)

8, Migdia Street
Vilasacra
Girona
17485
17th April 2008

The Major
Vilasacra
17485
Town Hall
28, Castelló Street


Dear madam,

We are writing to you because this is our 6th year in this village and we have some ideas to improve the welfare state of Vilasacra.
First of all we think that the public transport is not so good and it’s necessary to give a better service by increasing the number of buses.
Secondly, we have seen that in Summer there aren’t enough activities to do and a public swimming pool could be a perfect idea for children and adults.
In our opinion , the village is quite comfortable and well coming, but maybe it needs to be lively by organising some weekend activities.

Thank you for your attention , and we hope that you think about our ideas.

Yours faithtfully,

MARINA SARQUELLA & ADRIÀ CARMONA

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Story: An Elephant and an Ant

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An elephant and an ant met near a river. The elephant was walking when the ant shouted:

Ant- Hey! Stop! Be careful!

Elephant- Who is this? - Said the elephant.

A- It’s me! Here! Down, at your feet. You were going to step me!

E- Oh, I’m sorry. What are you doing here?

A- I am looking for food and you are stepping my way. Can you put out your leg from here?

E- I’m bigger than you. Why should I do what you want?

A- Because I’m more intelligent than you.

E- That’s not true!

A- Yes!

E- No!

A- Yes!

Suddenly, a voice said:

Turtle- Shut up! I want to sleep!

E- What’s up? The stone is talking!

A- No, It’s a mountain!

T- No! I’m a turtle! Haven’t you ever seen a turtle?

E- What’s a turtle? I don’t know what a turtle is...

A- I’ll tell you: It’s an animal with a big shell and four legs. It eats wild herbs but some of them eat meat. What do you eat?

T- I usually eat ants, is it OK?

A- Nooooo!!

T- Don’t worry, I was joking.

E- Really?

T- Yes, I don’t eat ants, I eat elephants.

A- Wow! Like me!

E- I’m getting angry! Very furious! With turtles people make soup. Do you want to be in a soup?

T- Mmm. I like soups!

Suddenly a mole appeared from the soil.

Mole- What’s going on? You! Big guy, you are stepping on my place, my home is falling down!

E- It’s not me! It’s the ant!

M- And what the hole are you doing, ant?

A- Such a beautiful day!

Giraffe- Yes, very nice. Don’t you think?

T- Eing? Where do you come from?

G- I’ve seen everything and the ant is stepping the mole’s house.

A- Wow! The tree is talking!

G- Shut up snitch!

A few moments later the giraffe hit the tree and a lot of pineapples fall from the tree, hitting the elephant’s head and killing him. The elephant fall on the mole killing him too.

Then, the turtle said:

T- Mmm, we have a dinner now!

G- How do you prefer that? Rare, medium or well done?

A- Well done and, if it’s possible, with chips.

T- Yes, and an apple in the mouth.

Yes, it was a great cook dinner. They washed the elephant and the mole in the river and ate them after cooking.

They spent the afternoon talking about football and after a lot of hours the ant said:

A- Aren’t you hungry?

G- Yes!

T- But we’ve eaten a lot.

G & A- Yes.

T- We can eat something light, like... an ant?

G & A- Nooooo!

T- So... a giraffe?

G & A- Noooo!

T- Maybe a turtle?

G & A- Yeeess!

T- But I don’t want to eat turtle now!

G & A- But we want that.

They killed the turtle and later they made a delicious turtle soup.

A- Mmmm. That soup was great!

G- Yes, but I want to tell you a secret. Come here, on the top of the tree.

The ant climbed the tree, and when she was on the top, near the giraffe’s head:

G- Fffffff (blowing).

The ant fall to the floor and died...

G-(singing) MmMmm mmMMm... I’m alive.

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